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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kid · clip · swing · bowl · current · ruler

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. kid — child
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. kid — to tease
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. current — electric
  8. clip — to cut
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. clip — a video
  12. clip — for paper
  13. swing — to play on
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. current — happening now
  16. swing — music
  17. swing — in golf
  18. current — of water

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com